2017 FT102 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2017 FT102 as a "Near Earth Asteroid" due to its orbit's proximity to Earth, but it is not considered potentially hazardous because computer simulations have not indicated any imminent likelihood of future collision.
2017 FT102 orbits the sun every 386 days (1.06 years), coming as close as 0.98 AU and reaching as far as 1.10 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2017 FT102 is probably between 0.002 to 0.010 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.
2017 FT102's orbit is 0.00 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that its orbit is relatively close to Earth's orbit.
2017 FT102 has 6 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:
| Date | Distance from Earth (km) | Velocity (km/s) |
|---|---|---|
| March 25, 2035 | 11,752,294 | 4.399 |
| Nov. 28, 2035 | 16,900,339 | 2.630 |
| Aug. 21, 2036 | 18,425,592 | 5.597 |
| May 10, 2054 | 5,768,148 | 1.625 |
| Sept. 29, 2054 | 12,096,916 | 1.839 |
| Sept. 11, 2072 | 10,348,065 | 1.519 |
2017 FT102's orbit is determined by observations dating back to March 25, 2017. It was last officially observed on April 3, 2017. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 79 observations used to determine its orbit.
2017 FT102 can be reached with a journey of 362 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 4.46 km/s. To put this into perspective, the delta-v to launch a rocket to Low-Earth Orbit is 9.7 km/s. There are 837,339 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.
See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2017 FT102.
The position of 2017 FT102 is indicated by a ◯ pink circle. Note that the object may not be in your current field of view. Use the controls below to adjust position, location, and time.